acegolfer

For driver tee shots, your hands are not supposed to be in front of the ball at impact.

Good for you. Keep us updated.

Explain what you do on the range to hit 29 pure out of 30.

Erik, Thank you so much for answering! I have been wondering this question for many weeks. I have grooved my hip rotation using Shawn Clement's drill to fix hip thrust and it worked. Nevertheless, when I see my impact position, I still see weight is not fully transferred forward. I will work on hip slide and hope it will fix it. One more question for everyone. Without the hip slide, I currently have in-out swing (misses being push straight or hook, normal shape is draw). I'm trying to reduce the excessive in-out swing currently so that my swing path is more (not necessarily exactly) square to the target line. My current drill that seems to work is to stand closer, narrower stance and shorten backswing. After reading 8 pages, it seems that hip slide will make the swing path even more inside-out. I'm worried that it will mess my swing path even worse. What can I do to avoid more in-out swing? (I know I can try things out at the range, but I'm out of country and won't be able to hit the range the next 2 weeks.)

I'm a natural lefty playing golf right handed. I carry 13 clubs and I'm thinking of carrying an extra left handed PW, for potential trouble shots. Left hand swing doesn't seem foreign to me.

I have found lots of own reading and video taping is not only economical but also effective way to rebuild swing or fix faults. It may take longer than having a really good instructor. But personally, I like the slow progress that I'm going through. What I'm trying to say is I'm too cheap.

Is Shawn Clement wrong in his Hogan power drill? His hip is forward at impact but it's not because his left hip slides during downswing. During downswing, his left hip only rotates around right hip, or "connects" according to him. His forward hip position at impact is a result of right hip "wiping" (moving forward) during backswing. Or is his left hip "connecting" action at the beginning of downswing the same thing as hip sliding?

I went from shooting mid 80s to mid 100s after 3 year layoff. I re-established my HI at 25. Went down to 13 in 6 months. Hang on, it will come back with practice. If I were you, I'd completely rebuild my swing after lay off. Analyze your swing video and try to rebuild from the ground up.

36 balls (= 1 token). Before range, I hit 20 chip/pitch shots to loosen up. Then at range, start with 5-6 shots with GW. Then about 10 with 6 iron. Then 5-6 shots with 5 wood. At this moment, I'm ready to go. The rest can be anything from driver to chipping. For example, if I am playing, my last 3 shots are the first tee shot of the day. For each shot, I go through the same preshot routine with a specific target in mind.

I realized that I had early extension, aka hip thrust in April. It took 1 month at the range to fix it. Boy, my swing feels totally different now. I think early extension is #1 swing fault among mid cappers. Among all swing faults, I think this to be the most deadly one that needs to fixed ASAP.

IMHO, "fast hands" is a politically correct term for "handsy swing." But I'm not a pro.

A similar thing happened to Phil in 2001 Buick 3rd playoff hole, which he won. From http://lubbockonline.com/stories/021...21201041.shtml The third playoff hole, the 425-yard 17th, was a script right out of a horror show. Mickelson hit first and fanned his drive into a canyon left of the fairway, leaving him with virtually no chance at par. Lickliter followed by hitting his drive in the exact same spot. Both hit provisional tee shots, assuming the balls would not be found, and both hit the fairway with their third shots. But Lickliter found his ball and had to go back to the tee and hit his third shot over again. Mickelson was already in the fairway and didn't want to find his. Much to his chagrin, someone in the gallery found it for him and he had to replay his third shot, too. Lickliter hit the fairway for the third time. Mickelson's ball headed for the canyon once again.

That was tough. I only got 12/18 correct. Learned a lot.

Suppose you can pick any week of the year but must golf solo. Your budget is $500 for the entire green fees. Where would you go?

Do you know that handicap is just a number? You will become a better golfer if you don't get too obsessed with HI. I'd definitely play different courses and enjoy.

This thread has gone wild. To get back to OP's question, I think it's helpful to know how to hit both ways. You need to experiment using the advices given above. Having said that, I don't think you should hit draws. Hitting an intentional draw for a natural fader is harder than the other way around. You will soon learn what "double cross" means. How much left to right is your "consistent fade?" If it's not more than 5 yards, you are much more better off not hitting a draw at all (see KJ Choi). Even for dogleg left holes, it's only 10 yard difference, which is less than a club difference. If you fade more than 10 yards, then reduce it to 5 yards instead of trying to learn how to hit draws. What I'm trying to say is if you have a consistent shot, why change? But if you are inconsistent with your fade, then it's a different story.

I visited St. Andrews in 1996. I was not a golfer then but soon realized how historic that place was. They had 9-hole putting green (par 27), which cost about 5 pounds, IIRC. It was a lot of fun because of all the hills. I checked the green fee for the old course and it was less than 100 pounds, IIRC.

What are you playing and are you happy with it?

Go with 2-ball, which is more forgiving for off center hits. Scotty Cameron putters are very hard to hit unless you have a consistent putting stroke.

To OP, I live in S. Florida. Where did you get fitted, how much, and how was your experience?

Any exceptions to this rule?

It was one of the most memorable days in my life. Drove 90 minutes early in the morning and played 3 different courses and drove back 90 minutes.

Yeah, you are only 17. I played 54 holes when I was 30. Golf was a lot of fun those days.

Is it just me? I get too exhausted after 18 holes and can't do anything after. I wish I could play relaxed without thinking too much about scoring. I have new respect for tour players who need to focus for 4 straight days.